Dark Heir
by Raidre
Summary: What if Voldemort never heard the prophecy? What if Harry wasn't thought to be the prophecized child, and grew up neglected? What if Voldemort saw himself in the child he never had?


**DARK RAIN**

**Chapter One: Introductions**

_**Disclaimer:** _Anything you recognize here is J. K. Rowling. If not, it is mine. Naturally, I am not making any money out of this.

A boy lay quietly sobbing as his mother punished him for setting the curtains alight. The boy in question was Harry Potter, five years old. He never meant to set the curtains alight, it was just a case of early accidental magic. His eyes watered at the thought of no food for two days, _and_ being confined to his room.

Why didn't mummy like him? He asked himself. He'd tried to be as good as his younger brother, if not better, but mummy still didn't like him. Neither did daddy, for that matter. He didn't know why, only that it had to do with a Prophecy that he was involved in. It wasn't his fault! He thought rebelliously. _I_ didn't make any Prophecies.

Lily finished lecturing the boy with satisfaction. That had been a family heirloom the boy had destroyed, and now she felt she had avenged it.

Ever since she had heard that Prophecy, she had felt distanced from the boy that was destined to kill his brother, Daniel. Granted, Daniel was said to destroy the Dark Lord, but his brother would kill him as well. Apparently a spy had heard it, but he was apprehended and 'converted'. When she had first heard the Prophecy coming from Albus Dumbledore, the words themselves burnt their way into her mind, and imprinted on her very soul.

_A child will be born into the light, seeking darkness as a refuge._

_Born as the seventh month dies, from parents who have thrice defied the Dark Lord._

_He will join the entirety his brother will try to kill, yet destroy his brother as he dies._

_Victory is not certain, but neither can live when the other survives._

_The purest being will be gold and green, while blood is the second line._

Lily came to realize that this must be about Harry and Daniel, as the only other applicable child would be Neville Longbottem, but he was an only child.

_A child will be born into the light, seeking darkness as a refuge. _That meant one of their children would turn away from the light.

_Born as the seventh month dies, from parents who have thrice defied the Dark Lord. _That could only mean one of her sons, and she had no doubts which. Harry was born in late July, while his brother was born in August, exactly a month after.

_He will join the entirety his brother will try to kill, yet destroy his brother as he dies._ Harry, the afore-mentioned one, would join Voldemort, whom his brother would kill, and somehow kill his brother when Daniel killed Voldemort.

_Victory is not certain, but neither can live when the other survives. _Dumbledore had called it a fifty percent chance Lily's son would win his battle, and was going to train him when he became older.

_The purest being will be gold and green, while blood is the second line. _Lily was a bit confused on this line, but had puzzled it out to mean the one most firmly seated in the light had a heart of gold and probably greenish eyes, and the second in line to be the heir of Gryffindor.

While a select few knew only that an illegimite line had survived out of the purebloods of Godric Gryffindor, fewer knew that James and his sons were the heirs to the Courageous and Noble House of Gryffindor. Not even Dumbledore was privy to this secret, only two other people knew about this, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin. The old friends had abandoned Peter Pettigrew, when he at last showed his true colours and joined Lord Voldemort openly. The only secret between Lily and James against Sirius and Remus was the Prophecy.

Lily believed herself to be muggleborn, one of those people He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named preyed on. She was a vivid young woman, with her striking red hair and passionate green eyes, which earned her the reputation of a fiery beauty. That was true even down to her personality and temper, which she often lost control of. Harry got the worst of her temper tantrums, as she was scared he would murder Daniel in his bed.

That was far from true, Daniel and Harry being inseparable companions. Their parents worried over this, and tried to discourage Daniel from doing this in various ways, most in Harry's hearing. He grew sad at this, as he was only five when they finally gave up, Daniel, four.

Daniel was just a newly-born when the prophecy was first told in a pub called the Hogs Head, from a woman called Sybil Trelawney who was applying for an occupation as divination teacher. He was a child with less green eyes than his brother and mother, more hazel, and they were the most open and friendly. His hair was a neat dark auburn, probably a mixture of his parents. He had a sunny disposition, and was never seen with a frown. He had an odd, loping walk that gave him the look of a clown.

Harry was perhaps the complete opposite in nature, always thoughtful, with startling emerald eyes that had an underlying sadness, and sometimes pain, beneath them, hidden by a mask. He had messy black hair that seemed to always go in opposite directions, no matter what method was applied. His face was structured with high cheekbones that gave him an aristocratic look. He was thin where Daniel was chubby, and he moved with as much grace his five-year-old form would allow.

He was an exact replica of his father in looks, but that was detested by the 'Lord of the House' himself. The one difference was that James Potter had glasses. His name was the child's middle name before the Prophecy happened, when he still loved his son. Daniel had 'Evans' as his middle name, which was his mother's surname.

His 'uncles' were a completely different matter. They both loved him in their different ways. Sirius, or Uncle Padfoot, was from the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. When Harry and Daniel first learned of this, they were overcome with giggles. Ever since then, they had asked innocently for him to repeat the name in the utmost serious way. He was a joker, like Harry's father, but without ever getting angry if Harry did something wrong.

Remus was also Uncle Moony, and was the most caring and attached to Harry in all of his 'family'. He wouldn't visit often, because of something that happened to him each month. Uncle Moony said it was because he was a werewolf, but both Harry and Daniel knew he was just tricking. He played with the children the most often, and was the only one who saw Harry shrink from his parents, and their often neglect of him. They were coming later today for Harry's birthday, because unlike his parents, they always remembered.

He got up under his mothers hostile glare with barely a sniffle. He wanted Uncle Padfoot and Uncle Moony to come so his parents would be nice. They were always nice to him around his uncles, so he took advantage of that, getting as many hugs from them as he could, and asking them again and again if they loved him. This had become routine and he could get away with it without being punished for it.

His wishes were answered as the doorbell rang and he ran eagerly to find out who it was. His mothers yell for him to come back was cut off as the door opened to admit his two uncles, each laden with presents. Harry wondered who they were for as Daniel came running along. Apparently he had not lost his curiosity in his wild dancing around their uncles, because he soon asked what the presents were for.

Uncle Padfoot laughed. 'Jealous, squirt?' he asked, as he expertly ruffled the boys auburn hair. 'It's your brother's birthday!' he exclaimed, handing Harry a big present wrapped in ribbons.

He stared at it in disbelief, and looked up at his uncles, confused. Remus was the only one who noticed the puffy eyes and the tear-tracks running down his face, for Sirius had gone to greet his friends. A huge smile suddenly threatened to split his face as he realized what his uncle said was true and gave Remus rib-cracking hug. Remus lifted him up into the air along with the two presents, and swung him around.

He set Harry down and the child started to run around like a hyperactive child who had just eaten lots of sweets. James and Lily came into the room, and, seeing the children and their friends running around madly, beat a hasty retreat into the hallway.

'And what would be the cause for the celebration?' enquired a confused Lily from the safety of the hallway. 'And what are the presents for, may I ask?'

Remus knew that they had forgotten Harry's birthday yet again, and took the hand of the newly turned six-year-old. He smiled at him softly and Harry grinned back.

Sirius was not so quick. He looked at Lily and James in confusion, then something clicked and he exclaimed jovially, 'Merlin, James! Don't tell me you forgot the fifth year in a row?'

'No, it's… um… well, we were, ah, _going _to have a surprise party, and we forgot you're _so _obvious and forgot to tell you…' James trailed off, meeting the accusing glare of Remus.

Harry, however, was not so perceptive. 'You were?' he half-whispered, eyes as big as saucers. Surprise and happiness spread across his features and even Sirius noticed that this must be a rare occurrence. James shifted uncomfortably as both is parents began to feel guilty. Harry ran over and threw himself on his dad, then his mum, as he hoped against hope that they might love him now.

His father patted him on the head awkwardly as his mother smiled weakly.

Sirius cleared his throat loudly to get the attention of the Potters. 'Well, lovely as this may be, how about having a birthday lunch and then… present time!' he yelled as he picked up one of the children under each arm and swung them around, laughing.

Lunch? Thought Lily to herself. What am I going to do?

James sensed his wife's distress and smoothly covered for her. 'We were in the middle of preparing everything, so, why don't you make yourself comfortable in the sitting room?'

As the guests and the boys trouped to the sitting room, James and Lily talked in low voices what to do. Remus dropped back to talk to them and overheard enough to know for certain that they had forgotten the poor boy's birthday. Not wanting Harry to be disappointed, he suggested quietly that should get back to preparing for the party. '…James, you should get the rooms ready while Lily finishes the cake.'

Lily shot a grateful look at him while James stared at Remus, eyes guarded while he wondered how much the werewolf knew. Lily was at that point rushing off to the kitchens to magically prepare a fancy-looking cake. Without another word James walked off in the direction of the family room, taking the presents with him.

Remus knew nothing except they often neglected Harry, and forgot important events in his life. When he was sure both James and Lily were out of sight, he drew Harry aside to talk to him.

Slightly puzzled but curious, Harry obeyed. From inside his robes Remus carefully took out a locket and held it up to the light. Harry looked at the locket, which was emblazoned with a wolf. He stared at it, half-hypnotized by the way the locket caught and absorbed the light, letting it sparkle amber only where the wolf's eyes were.

'Now Harry,' began Lupin, to the child who was still staring at the locket in fascination, 'I want you to promise me that _whatever _you do, you will _not_ take this locket off under _any _circumstances, do you understand me? Also, do not tell anyone that you have this in your possession, okay?'

Harry tore his eyes away from the locket and cocked his head to the side. 'Why?'

'Because…' Remus started, and then stopped, unsure of himself. Why did he want this wayward child to have his most precious item, his family heirloom? He could only answer that he had a strong gut feeling that Harry would be needing it soon. 'I can't tell you because I don't really know myself…'

This answer confused Harry greatly, but he wanted to show Uncle Moony that he was a big boy and understood the big words that adults sometimes used. He got the part that Remus didn't want him to take the locket off as Remus put it around his neck and hid it underneath his baggy t-shirt. Then they walked into the sitting room where Sirius and Daniel were talking about Dan's past birthdays.

'Have your parents ever forgotten any of your birthdays?' Sirius asked, his back as well as Dan's facing Remus and Harry. To Remus, Sirius sounded like an interrogator extracting information.

'Nu-uh.' Dan declared. He elaborated. 'Daddy gets the house all colourful-' at this Sirius looked around at the room they were in sceptically. Nearly every single room in the house had a Gryffindorish colour scheme with red and gold, with real gold inlays. '-and has a big cake, and invites everyone over. Then the next day you come with Uncle Moony.'

Remus cleared his throat and Sirius turned around. However, he was unable to say anything and James and Lily walked in, Lily holding a regular sized cake and James talking in a low voice. He faked a big smile and a cheerful voice, 'Come on everybody, the party's this a way!' with that he turned around and led the way to the family room.

Once they got inside, Harry was speechless seeing the room decorated so… colourfully, having never been so happy, and so sure that his parents loved him. It was this that made him launch himself on his father and cry, 'You _do _love me, you do!'

James flinched and drew back, carefully extracting the small arms around his waist as Sirius and Remus looked blankly ahead. Again, he wondered how much they knew, then dismissing it, because they knew how he hated to be hugged in general.

Lily allowed herself a small smile of amusement as James appeared to have trouble getting free from an obstinate pair of arms that refused to let go. She could see he was getting slightly annoyed, but conceded she knew him too well and no-one else would notice.

Daniel was already at the presents and waited impatiently as everyone else slowly moved over. Finally they were all there at the presents, and Harry grabbed the one on top. He gave it a shake next to his ear to try and tell what it was.

'Get a move on!' shouted Daniel.

Everyone laughed as Harry tore off the wrappings in a frenzy to get at what was inside. Almost instantly, something poured out in a brightly coloured flood all over the floor. 'Sweets!' he yelled in delight.

Sirius leant over. 'Don't forget to thank your parents-' he whispered but it was drowned out by the yells and enthusiastic boy that was frantically hugging his parents yet again. He looked ruefully at the mess of wrappings on the floor and shook his head. It looked as if James and Lily had simply poured the lollies in the middle of the paper and wrapped it up like a bundle in their haste. Which, he concluded bitterly, they probably did. Wait 'til Harry sees his present, he thought. Much better than any sweets. Sirius decided to save his until last and handed Harry Remus's present before he could choose Sirius's.

Remus's present was long, and was wrapped in green shimmering paper and a golden ribbon. Harry stared at the way the light reflected from the wrapping, and surmised that it wasn't paper, but a cloth. He decided to keep the wrapping intact and use the cloth for something else, like a cloak. He thought it would be big enough. Carefully, he carefully unwrapped the cloth as James and Lily exchanged uneasy glances. Inside…

There was a toy broomstick, one that had cost Remus six months pay. Harry's eyes immediately lit up and threw himself onto his uncle, eyes leaking tears of happiness. James smiled at his friend, and asked why Remus didn't keep the broomstick for a month more, because it was Daniels birthday then. Remus and Sirius stared, Remus with shock at the cold-heartedness, but Sirius in bemusement. He decided that this was a joke and clapped James on the back.

'It's the boy's birthday, Remus is making it special! Besides, Daniel hates flying, but Harry's got a passion for it. He _loves _flying.' It was true. Harry was a natural in the air, whereas Daniel wouldn't touch a broom after the dreadful first time. They had only been flying once, when Daniel was three and Harry four, when they went to a pitch to be tutored. They paid only for Daniel's lesson and left Harry to his own devices, but didn't let him touch the toy broomsticks. So Harry, alone, wandered down to the other side of the pitch and dimly registered the coach asking why the older boy didn't get a lesson. He heard James's smooth lie, that he hated flying, and it sparked a rebellious part of him that didn't want to be controlled. Harry, determined, decided that he was going to fly some way or another.

He ran to where the adults brooms were stored and paused at the door, looking back to see Daniel having trouble to even command the broomstick to jump into his hand. He grinned and ran into the shed, where he collided with a beefy man coming out. The man grabbed him and directed him to the little kids shed, but Harry had decided to get the broom no matter what the cost.

'Please sir, my father wants a broom but he's helping my little brother over there,' he pleaded.

The man threw out his chest, and it was obvious that he liked being called sir. 'Well… I suppose if it's for your dad, it's okay… go on in.' he replied with a smile on his face.

Harry smiled brilliantly as exultation ran over his face. It had worked! However, when he got inside he was overwhelmed by the sight of so many brooms and became nervous. He ran back outside and hailed the man. 'Sir.. um, I don't know which broom…'

The man was happy to show him the latest model, a Cleansweep 5. 'So far, it's the best out of all of these,' he boasted. 'Even has a brake!'

Harry thanked the man profusely and waited until he was out of sight before mounting the broom and kicking off.

This felt natural. This was where he was supposed to be. This is what he was going to do with his life!

Back on the ground, James looked up to see a small, talented broom rider flying expertly, in loops, swerving air. He wished irritably that his son would be so good. Daniel had fallen off twice and he still hadn't left the ground! His mood was interrupted by a beefy man standing behind him, shading his eyes to see the flier. 'That's some son you've got there mister…?

James looked at the man with disbelief. That could not be his son there, riding a too-big broom. He looked around wildly for Harry, and didn't see him anywhere. That meant that he had to be the one who was displaying so much skill in the air. All around the field people were stopping to watch. Why couldn't Daniel have inherited his ability? He asked himself in frustration, his mood rapidly darkening. Not that… boy!

'Potter.' He supplied the man with, turning his back and hoping he would get the message. He didn't.

'Okay, Pot… ter…' he drew out the sound as he wrote it down on a clipboard. 'Well, Mr. Potter, I am the manager of this pitch and I think, with proper lessons, your son would go a long way, maybe even internationals. Is this your son's first time on a broomstick?'

'Yes…' said James with gritted teeth. He was furious, and would tan the boy's hide when they got home. 'But, we really can't stay… Ah! There's Harry coming down now. Goodbye!'

Harry was indeed coming down. As he touched the ground, he was aware of everyone looking at him. Most also treated him to applause, as he was only four, younger than he looked in the air. James strode up to him and grabbed him by the hair and pulled him along. He soon became aware of the silence and the stares following Harry's yelping.

When they got home, he was slapped across the face and told he was to have no food until he promised to stop being such a showoff. When he protested he was slapped again and sent to his room where Daniel snuck him food for two weeks, until his parents gave in.

All this was remembered in a split second as Harry stared at the broomstick and whooped for joy. He made to run outside but was stopped by Sirius who handed him his last present. This was also wrapped neatly with red paper, but no ribbons. Harry didn't care about the paper and tore it open straight away. Inside there was a plain white box with holes in the top. Lily looked concerned while James looked apprehensive. He knew what tricks Sirius could get up to.

Harry cautiously opened the lid and looked inside. He gave a yelp and fell backwards with the box on its side a few feet away from him, open. A dull green snake with golden eyes slithered out.

Pandemonium reigned. Daniel started crying while Lily picked him up and stood on a chair. James and Sirius jumped behind the couch. Remus jumped _on _the couch. While this was happening, Harry propped himself up on his elbows, and came face to face with the snake and froze. So did everyone else.

The snake flickered its forked tongue in and out, and wondered which human would be the tastiest morsel. Unbeknownst to Sirius, he had picked up one of the more poisonous snakes in the world, one of the vipers. The snake's eyes flicked to the slender boy on the ground. He was the closest.

As the snake slid slowly towards him, Harry woke from his stupor. _'Stop!' _he cried. To his amazement, the snake did. He didn't realize he wasn't speaking English anymore, and assumed everyone's shocked look was for the snake who had followed his order.

'_You speak our tongue, the tongue of snakes? Clearly you must be special… I will have to go hungry… But only for today. You and I will talk again, Child of the Serpents.'_ With this the snake slid back into its case.

After this incident, the evening had a strained feel to it as Harry's parents avoided him, but sent openly hostile glares. Sirius tried to shrug it off and make light of it, but it wasn't very effective. His brother Daniel was in awe of him and told him Sirius said Harry was a parseltongue, so Remus was the only one who acted completely normal. Sirius was obviously eager to be off, and after a quick 'happy birthday' he went to the front door to wait for Remus, who was walking with a miserable Harry at his heels.

Out of sight of everyone, he asked Harry if he could have a word. 'Sure, Uncle Moony,' was the dejected reply.

'Harry,' he said, kneeling down. 'I want you to remember this. It is not your fault that you can speak parseltongue – the language of snakes. It is a gift, so rare, so valuable, that jealous people have convinced others that it is a dark art. You are not a bad boy for just being _able_ to speak it, but only if you used this power for the dark arts. Do you understand?'

'I-I think so.' However hard it was for Harry to understand, he got the gist of what Remus was saying. These were the words he needed to hear.

However, when Remus had gone away with Sirius, he walked back into the family room, he was greeted by the sight of his mother having hysterics while his father comforting her. He caught the words, 'unnatural boy', 'snakes' and 'never should have had him', as well as a lot of other colourful language.

He ran from the room after getting the presents, and climbed the stairs to his room. It was as far as Daniel's room as could possibly be. Once there, he put all the presents on his bed and stared at them blankly, hardly registering the snake coming out of its confinement.

'_What is the matter, Child of the Serpents?' _The snake asked the crying boy.

'_Mummy said she didn't want me!' _he sniffed. _'She said I was unnatural!'_

The snake thought for a moment. He didn't know what to do, or how to comfort the child because he'd never had a mother. All snakes found their own place in the world. Hesitantly he suggested that concept to Harry.

He stopped crying. '_Go away?' _he asked. _'What… is it hard, living away from your parents?' _

The snake considered. _'I… don't know. I never had any.'_

Harry thought about this and came to a conclusion. _'I'm going.' _He declared. _'If mummy doesn't love me then I don't love mummy!'_

The snake cast a considering eye over Harry's scant possessions, deciding which items should come with them. _'Do you have anything to eat? We hunt our own food, but humans don't. Bring that cloak, the flying stick, and any weapon you posses.'_

Harry was puzzled. '_'What's a flying stick? And I don't have a weapon.'_

The snake sighed. He grabbed Harry broomstick with his tail, and waved it in the boy's face._ 'That is a flying stick. As for a weapon, we will have to make do without one. Come on, Child of the Serpents.'_

Harry went to the window. He was on the fourth floor, and looked very high up. He took a deep breath and mounted the broomstick, forgetting the snake said a cloak. The snake sighed and grabbed Remus's wrapping paper which was in a bundle, with his birthday sweets were in the middle and the ribbon tying the top closed. He guessed that it would be good enough for a cloak, or a robe, because the boy didn't seem to have any.

He managed to wrap around the boy's middle as he took off, still holding the sweets with his tail.

Initially, the broomstick simply dropped, and Harry bit back a yell, his faith in Remus. He had his eyes closed as the broom's wild drop levelled out about ten feet above the ground, and shot towards the wood at the back of the house. When they were well in the woods, far from the house, they dropped of the broom and began walking. They talked non-stop until it was midnight, each learning numerous things about each other. When the snake finally realized Harry was dead on his feet, he ordered a stop. They found a cave where it was reasonably warm and fell asleep instantly, curled up against each other.

Something was poking Harry's side. He frowned and rolled over. The poking continued. 'Mummy…' he murmured blearily, 'Let me sleep…'

'_Harry! I am not your mother!'_ the snake said indignantly, looking disgusted at the thought. Harry sat up and smiled sheepishly.

'_Sorry… I thought you were Mummy. She always wakes me up…'_ he replied in parseltongue, with a slight pang of regret. _'Hey! It's not even sunrise! Come on…' _Hesaid, as indignant as the snake was.

The snake misinterpreted his words as a wish to get moving, and happily obliged. Harry grumbled and gathered up the bag of sweets he had been using as a pillow, and his broom and exited the cave with the intention of following the snake.

He was brought up short by the sight of yet _another_ snake, monstrous in size, circling his friend with its fangs drawn. There was no way his friend could survive a fight. Dropping his bundles he ran in the middle of the hissing snakes

The enemy snake laughed and mocked Harry's friend in his choice of weapons. _'A five-year-old boy? The competition is getting easier by the minute!'_

'_I'm not five, it was my birthday yesterday and now I'm six!' _replied Harry furiously, insulted into speaking.

This brought the enemy up short, and Harry was able to study it carefully. It was a dark green, so dark it almost appeared black. It had eyes of a dark, rich gold. It was a female, he couldn't say how he knew, he just did.

'_Interesting… another speaker has entered the world… hmm…' _She studied the boy. Despite his small frame, he was lithe and slender, just like her master. She could practically _feel _his aura pulsating. Interesting, she thought. He felt as her master did as a small boy, yet with almost double the raw magical strength. She made her decision. _'I will allow both to live for the moment… _If _you come to my masters lair. I am called Nagini_'

Both the snake and Harry were survivors, from what she could see. They had travelled far by the scent on their clothes. Yet the boy moved with almost foolish bravery and deep-set loyalty. As he considered her offer while conversing with his 'pet', she saw a sharp intelligence behind those startling green eyes. The boy was a curiosity at least.

She was rewarded when the boy calmly looked into her eyes and answered in an even tone, _'We accept.'_

'_Excellent.' _She hissed, triumphant. _'Now, if you'll follow me…' _She led the way while listening to their conversation behind her. It was interesting to see the boy listened to the snakes ideas and comments with interest, before replying with respect. Yes, the boy was defiantly interesting.

They reached the borders of her master's kingdom, and spoke the password in parseltongue. The only way to get past was to know the secret passwords, known to only Inner Circle Members, Nagini and the Dark Lord himself. The rest had to visualise their master and apparate.

She more or less commanded the snake and boy to stop staring and follow her, as they were brought up short when the entire Lord's facilities were brought into view. She had to admit, for a newcomer, the sight of a forest disappearing and a system of buildings would be daunting to a newcomer.

As she led the way into the underground complex, she decided to keep the boy a secret from the people who had joined her master's cause. She kept to small and little known passageways until she came to the whole third of the underground system that was forbidden to anyone except the Lord, Nagini or their 'guests'

The boy could now walk upright freely and Nagini moved at a faster pace. She went down twisting yet airy corridors and moved in confusing directions, often circling around so the boy wouldn't try to run.

Finally, she took him to the Dark Lord's chambers and got him to knock on the door for her. _'Come in, Nagini.'_ This time, Harry was ready and recognized the parseltongue. He stored away this information for later, took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

He was greeted with something far different to what he thought a snake's master's rooms would be. A welcoming fire was crackling in the grate, and there was a four poster bed taking up a whole side of the room. Next to the fire, a man sat and read reports. When the man looked up, and saw Harry standing next to the door shyly, the ruby eyes blinked. Turning to face his snake, he hissed,_ 'What have you brought me, Nagini?'_

Something almost like smugness flickered across the twelve foot long snake's face, and she answered, _'Let the boy tell you. I trust you find him interesting…'_

That was true. Nagini's master could feel his staggering amount of power, nevertheless, he was curious. 'Who are-'

Nagini interrupted him for perhaps the first time in his life, saying, _'Ask him in parseltongue, my lord.'_ The master could tell how exuberant the snake was and decided to try Nagini's theory.

'_Who are you, boy?'_ The Dark Lord asked in parseltongue, eyes narrowed. _'What are you doing here?'_

He was sure the snake was riling him up, until the boy answered. 'Harry Potter, sir. And Nagini took me here, but I don't know why. Who are you?'

Harry watched the man in the chair nearly choke as his eyes bulged. He blinked. It seemed the man was a bit stupid, since the question was simple enough…

'I am Voldemort, the Dark Lord!'

Oh. The man did understand, he was just being strange. 'What's your last name, mister Voldemort, sir?'

This time, Voldemort didn't choke, just stared. Harry decided the man must be a bit slow. But Voldemort was considering. That a truly powerful child had come, also speaking parseltongue, at a time he had decided to find an heir to the throne of the Dark Lord. Potter… That was the name of one of those so-called 'Light' families that supported that old fool Dumbledore. Also, he had never heard of Voldemort before, which would stop a lot of prejudice that the boy might have possessed. A glance at the boy's memories had quickly shown him that this was a neglected child, and with a few pushes, may come for a home and a 'caring father'. He would play that role, up to a certain extent, as he trained his 'heir'. Now, to see if the young, impressionable boy would accept…

'I am Voldemort Mortimer.' He replied, using his pure-blood name, from his mothers family of The Ancient and Wise House of Mortimer. 'Now, what would a young child such as yourself be doing out in the cold weather?' He asked, trying to put as much warmth into his voice as he could.

The Potter boy avoided his eyes. 'You weren't running away, were you?' Voldemort asked mercilessly. When the boy didn't move, Voldemort decided to press a bit harder and asked, 'Why did you run away?'

Harry looked up to meet Voldemort's eyes. 'Mummy and Daddy don't love me…' he admitted in a quiet voice, the first time he had said those words out loud.

Voldemort tried to keep a victorious smirk off his face. Just a few more well chosen phrases and the boy would be his to command. 'That's terrible… You know what? I've always wanted a son…'

The boy looked up hopefully as Voldemort continued. '…and you've always wanted a caring father.' Harry's eyes were anxious now, staring at Voldemort. 'I think we could work something out-'

Harry ran the few steps to Voldemort and swept him up in a hug, not noticing the lord had gone rigid with a frozen look of his face as he wept tears of joy. He suddenly pulled back with a serious look and Voldemort feared he would say no.

'On one condition,' he declared firmly, a stubborn look in his eyes. Voldemort was getting worried now.

'Name it.' He said, a little suspicious.

'I get to call you father.'

**Authors Note**

**This is my first go at a FanFiction story, and I know it may be similar to some stories. I'm not very happy with a lot of characters in this chapter, as they are too out of character to coincide with the books properly. I've tried to make the parents as much in character as I could to be believable, but what the books say about them being kind and sweet kind of makes it hard to make them the neglecting type. I've written Sirius as how I think he would have been if he hadn't gone to Azkaban for the killing of his friends, and Remus as he would be if he hadn't heard his friend killed his other friends. I've read other stories with the same beginning, and I apologize for making it so cliché in this chapter, but the truth is I had this idea before I even heard of FanFiction. There is a good reason for Harry having lots of magical power and the ability to talk to snakes, because I know in the books he got his parseltongue from the killing curse, but this isn't going to happen here. The main reason Harry is neglected is because James, Lily and Dumbledore have interpreted the prophecy to mean Harry is going to kill the brother, who in turn would kill Voldemort. Voldemort hasn't come to kill the Potters because he hasn't heard the prophecy which Snape overheard. Snape was caught and Dumbledore performed a nifty bit of spellwork that ensures Snape can't tell anyone. The next chapter will pick up five years later, where Harry has a new identity…**


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